1. Ag put the mp3 in the next post so you can click it here on the board2. Cosell starts discussing the Rams at 13:38 in

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Eagle Eye: What Happened In The Loss; Previewing LA

Fran Duffy and Greg Cosell share their thoughts after watching the film of the team’s loss to Seattle on the road before going deep into their preview of this week’s matchup against the talented LA Rams

So they said that the Rams use the 11 personnel grouping about 70 percent of the time. I had to look up what that means. So apparently that means they use one tight end and three wide receivers most of the time–with one running back. That seems right. Interesting.

Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips and defensive tackle Aaron Donald make for a daunting challenge for the Philadelphia Eagles. Take a look at the Rams’ 3-4 and how the Eagles could attack it.

Each week TheRams.com will be taking a look at what Los Angeles’ opponents have to say about facing the Rams. Heading into Week 14 of the regular season, check out what the Philadelphia Eagles coaches and players had to say about their upcoming matchup against the Los Angeles Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday:

On what has changed about the Rams this season:

“Well to me the Rams have always had like a Super Bowl caliber defense, the offense has just always been playing catchup. Right now, that’s not the case. They’re balling on both sides of the ball. So, they are a very dangerous team, very talented and they’re playing very well.”

– Eagles’ WR Torrey Smith

On how he has seen Goff develop since last season:

“We’ve shared a number of crossover film this year with playing similar opponents and everything, so I’ve seen him on film a handful of times and yeah, I’ve just been impressed with the year that he’s been having. I don’t follow it too well, but seeing him on tape and everything you just see some of the throws he makes and some of the things they’re doing offensively down there and he’s having a great year and it’s exciting for him.”

– Eagles’ QB Carson Wentz

“Leading the NFL in scoring, you can probably start with that. A little bit more than three times the number of touchdowns as interceptions and he’s led them to a good record. I think that’s plenty for a young quarterback. Does a good job of moving the ball around to different guys. They do have a marquee rusher who’s right up there in the NFL, but he gets the ball to a lot of different guys in that passing game and he goes where his reads tell him to go. I think that’s pretty impressive for a young QB.”

– Eagles’ DC Jim Schwartz

“It’s fun to watch quite honestly. Just to see the growth in his play and all the things that we saw in him when we were scouting and working him out and evaluating all these quarterbacks a year ago, this is exactly what we saw. It’s exciting, obviously he is well coached there, he’s got some great minds on offense and really just putting him in a position to be successful and quite honestly, that’s kind of the formula that we try to take each and every week.”

– Eagles’ HC Doug Pederson

On their approach to containing QB Jared Goff:

“He’s a lot more mobile to where he can get away and get the ball thrown away, but he’s definitely different than Russell Wilson. I think with us, we have to make sure that we get to him. And we have to stop their run because Gurley is a big part of their offense and everybody can see it. We just have to make sure we stop him and we’ll get out chances.”

– Eagles’ DE Brandon Graham

On what DT Aaron Donald brings to the table:

“Yeah, he’s a game changer. Donald can really mess up some things offensively if you’re not aware of where he’s at. And you can kind of game plan a little bit for him, but at the same time we have a ton of confidence in the guys that we have upfront. We’ll limit what he can do and the way he can affect the game. But again, he’s a heck of a football player and you just have to be aware.”

– Eagles’ QB Carson Wentz

On how good the Rams defensive line looks:

“They’re pretty disruptive, physical, fast. A typical Wade Phillips defense, I mean everywhere he goes he has a way of getting the most out of those guys up front and they are talented as well.”

“Wade just has the right mix. Everybody knows that in football terms he’s going to play an under-front and play cover one. That’s his deal. But I think in recent years he has mixed the coverages a little bit more. When I went up against Wade when he was in Denver for a little bit and had that defense it was cover one almost every snap. I think he’s mixing it up a little bit more, but still his primary DNA is that five-man rush, cover one, just saying you have to beat us. He has those guys playing well.”

– Eagles’ OC Frank Reich

On what some of the characteristics are of a Sean McVay offense:

“Well, it starts definitely with the running game and what they’ve done with Todd Gurley and the run game. The offensive line going out and getting Andrew Whitworth ‘Big Whit’ and use him to secure that left tackle spot. It starts there – the run game. That’s the way it was in Washington, is get that run game established. Then the play-action pass comes off of that. That’s that you’re seeing, you’re seeing a lot of those same similarities there that we saw when he was in Washington. Obviously, here in L.A. they have some great skill on the outside, guys that can stretch the field. You know, Robert Woods, Tavon Austin, Gurley, guys like that that can really get down the field. So a lot of the same traits – same characteristics, but it all kind of hinges on the run.”

– Eagles’ HC Doug Pederson

On what stands out about the Rams:

“Pretty much that they do some of everything. They have good personnel. You see their receivers, you see Jared Goff making plays and throwing on the run. You see Todd Gurley obviously with his capabilities and what he can do in the running game and in the passing game. We pretty much have to be on point for everything. They have good personnel, they have speed, they have good route runners and a good run game. So, we have to be complete and play solid.”

Two weeks ago, the Rams faced a two-pronged rushing attack in the Saints’ Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara. While Kamara did rip off a 74-yard touchdown run — and caught his share of passes out of the backfield — Los Angeles was able to make enough adjustments to keep New Orleans’ run game from being too much of a difference maker.

Even last week, L.A. allowed 85 yards rushing in the second quarter, which led to a pair of Arizona touchdowns. But again, the Rams made adjustments, holding the Cardinals to only 14 yards in the second half.

This week will represent another challenge to the Rams’ rushing defense, which enters this week No. 27, allowing 122.8 yards per game on the ground.

The Eagles enter Week 14 No. 2 in rushing offense, racking up 143.3 yards per game. While the club lost Darren Sproles to a torn ACL and for the season after just three games, Philadelphia has still established a three-pronged attack with running backs LaGarrette Blount, Jay Ajayi, and rookie Corey Clement.

“[T]hey run the ball really well. We’ve had that come up several times,” defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. “We’ve had some big plays against us, but it’s the same as last week. I mean, they had 18 yards rushing in the second half. So, did we stop the run good enough? Yes, we did to win the game and that’s the important thing. We’ve got to stop the run well enough to win the game. We hadn’t been dominating against the run, but we’ve also not given up many points and that’s the No. 1 thing.”

A year after leading the league with 18 rushing touchdowns for the Patriots, Blount has been the primary rusher for the Eagles. He currently is No. 1 on the tea with 684 yards rushing, averaging 4.7 yards per attempt. While quarterback Carson Wentz is No. 2 on the team with 283 yards rushing, undrafted rookie Corey Clement is next on the list with 266 yards and actually leads the Eagles with four touchdowns.

But former Dolphin Jay Ajayi has been a clear difference-maker for the team. He’s averaging 7.9 yards per carry in his four games in Philadelphia since being acquired from Miami at the trading deadline, with 229 yards on 29 carries.

“Big, powerful guy. Aggressive guy — he’s a downhill runner,” Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said this week. “Great vision and just adds another element to our run game that gives us a little shot in the arm with him and LeGarrette. LeGarrette’s a little bigger back and powerful guy as well, but Jay, as we seen so far can definitely stretch the defense and just his aggressive nature. It’s just the way runs. He runs so aggressive, so aggressive that he doesn’t shy away from too much contact and obviously has the speed to make some explosive runs there.”

“He just brings another explosive running back. We have a handful of them and we’re very fortunate about that,” Wentz said. “But Jay just brings — he’s got some unique cutting ability and some vision that is pretty rare amongst running backs. I think between him and LeGarrette and Corey, those guys – they all kind of bring a different element in the back field and they all do a tremendous job.”

Defensive lineman Michael Brockers will be one of the players tasked with slowing down the ground game, and mentioned that L.A. has done a nice job of adjustments to halt opponents throughout the year under Phillips. That’s as the Rams have gotten deeper into the season everyone has gotten more familiar with the system.

“At first it was a new defense. Now everyone has been in it enough to know what their job is and I think it’s about how people attack this and understanding the way they attack us and how to defeat that,” Brockers said. “It’s all about the little adjustments. They’re not big things, they’re little things — find out your gap, hand placement here and there. So, I think that’s the good thing about this defense is that we’re adjustable but it’s not a big adjustment. We’re not doing different things. We’re doing our same things, just a little tweak.”

It’s those little things that will certainly be key against a strong Eagles offense that has multiple ways to attack a defense with the run.

So what does L.A. need to do to stop the run?

“We’ve got to do our jobs,” defensive tackle Aaron Donald said. “We had the opportunity to play the New Orleans Saints that had a good duo. So we know what to expect. We’ve got to go out there and stop the run so we get an opportunity to get after the quarterback.”

But former Dolphin Jay Ajayi has been a clear difference-maker for the team. He’s averaging 7.9 yards per carry in his four games in Philadelphia since being acquired from Miami at the trading deadline, with 229 yards on 29 carries.

One interesting point made on some Fox Sports show was that the Eagles play a lot of man coverage. They also play to intercept. The result is that they are one of the worst defenses for Yards after the Catch. Who is the best offense for YAC? LA Rams.

On the show with Cowgerd, Eric Davis, Rey Lewis and Whitlock, three chose the Rams to win. Cowherd chose the Eagles because he thinks the fires in CA are a big distraction for the players. I am confident that McVay can keep them focused.

A week ago, the Philadelphia Eagles looked like a lock to get a first-round bye in the NFC and a good bet to get home-field advantage through the playoffs.

One loss changed a lot.

The Eagles lost last week to a good Seattle Seahawks team, and that put them in a tough spot. Another loss on Sunday to the Los Angeles Rams would put them in danger of not getting a first-round bye. It‘s possible for the Eagles to go from 10-1 to the third seed in the NFC in the span of eight days (an Eagles loss and a Vikings win would leave the Rams and Eagles in a two-way tie for the second seed at 10-3, and the Rams would have the tiebreaker). That says something about the competitive nature of the NFC this season.

It’s a big game for the Rams too, and not just because of the obvious playoff seeding implications. This is the biggest game for the team since they came back to Los Angeles. It wasn’t always a warm welcome in their homecoming last year. But L.A. loves winners, the Rams are winning, and could put themselves in a great position to get a bye with another win Sunday.

It won’t be easy. If there’s a criticism of the Eagles, it’s their schedule. Football Outsiders ranks it as the second-easiest in the NFL so far this season. But the Eagles have played very well against that schedule. It’s not a team with a clear weakness.

It’s a big game for both teams, and both teams have proven by now that they’re very good. But I lean toward the Eagles. I’m picking them as a 1-point underdog in the Yahoo Pro Football Pick’em, and a 2-point underdog in the Westgate SuperContest. I think they’re slightly better and they understand exactly what this game means. Lose it, and their path in the playoffs might be a lot harder than anyone anticipated a week ago. Either way, it should be one of the best games of the season (and a fun matchup between the top two picks of last year’s draft, Jared Goff and Carson Wentz).

LOS ANGELES — Upwards of 2,000 credentials were distributed, which is about 500 more than usual. The Fox pregame show will be staged onsite, live from Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. And the only tickets available at the start of the week were on the secondary market, a first this season.

Sunday’s 4:25 p.m. ET matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and the Philadelphia Eagles isn’t just one of the biggest games this week, it’s the biggest NFL game that L.A. has experienced in decades.

You have to go all the way back to 1993, when the now-Oakland Raiders made a playoff run, to find equally relevant professional football in this city. And you have to go all the way back to 1983 to find the only other game between two teams averaging at least 30 points this late in the season, according to research from the Elias Sports Bureau.

The Eagles (10-2) and Rams (9-3) each come into their Week 14 matchup averaging 30.08 points per game, tops in the NFL.

The Eagles lead with a plus-146 point differential; the Rams are second at plus-139.

“It’s a great opportunity to play in a game like this,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “It’s a credit to both teams.”

Jared Goff and the Rams have had plenty to celebrate in their second season back in Los Angeles. Jeff Gross/Getty Images
Their ascensions have roots in the 2016 draft, when the Rams selected Jared Goff with the No. 1 overall pick and the Eagles countered with Carson Wentz at No. 2. Goff and Wentz are represented by the same agency, Rep 1 Sports, and spent the weeks leading up to the combine training together in Southern California. They pushed each other, built a respect for each other. And they have spent a lot of this season watching each other.

Goff and Wentz make up only the seventh quarterback duo to be selected with the first two picks in the common draft era, which dates back to 1967, and are off to better starts than any of the previous six.

Carson Wentz, who was taken one pick after Jared Goff in the 2016 draft, has the Eagles in position to clinch the NFC East with a win. Daniel Kucin Jr./Icon Sportswire
“Obviously we’ll be forever linked because of the draft and everything, and I think we’re both excited for this game and just for those matchups in the future,” Wentz said. “But at the end of the day, they’re a great football team and so are we right now. So there’s a lot riding on this one just because we’ve got two good NFC opponents. There’s a lot more at stake than just me versus Jared.”

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With a win, the Eagles can clinch the NFC East and bump their chances of locking up a first-round bye to 97 percent. If the Rams win, they would maintain at least a one-game lead over the division-rival Seattle Seahawks — their opponent next week — and position themselves among the top two seeds in the NFC.

The Rams will probably be without wide receiver Robert Woods and outside linebacker Connor Barwin, but they’re hoping inside linebacker Alec Ogletree can return from a hyperextended left elbow. The Eagles may be without star tight end Zach Ertz, who remains in concussion protocol.

Wentz leads the NFL with 29 touchdown passes, with Ertz, Nelson Agholor and Alshon Jeffery catching seven each. But the Eagles also rank second in rushing yards per game and are averaging an NFL-leading 68.0 yards after initial contact, thanks to a stout offensive line and the two-pronged attack of Jay Ajayi and LeGarrette Blount.

Defensively, the Eagles have allowed the NFL’s fewest rushing yards and have forced a three-and-out on 42.8 percent of possessions, on pace to be the best rate since the 2011 New York Jets, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

“They’re great in every aspect of the game — special teams, offense, defense, you name it,” Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth said. “They’ve got great players on all sides.”

The Rams are tied for the NFL lead in points per game just one season after finishing dead last, their 16.1-point increase on pace to top the 1999 Rams for the largest year-to-year increase since the 1970 merger. Under McVay, Goff’s passer rating has improved from 63.6 to 98.4 and Todd Gurley has vaulted himself back into prominence, while tied for the NFL lead with 11 touchdowns and second with 1,502 scrimmage yards.

The Rams’ defense, led by Aaron Donald, ranks third in sacks per attempt (9.5 percent) and tied for fourth in forced turnovers (21). Eagles coach Doug Pederson was a backup quarterback in the NFL while Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was well into his coaching career.

“I’ve known him for a lot of years, and I think he’s done an outstanding job wherever he’s gone,” said Pederson, who is seemingly battling McVay for Coach of the Year honors. “You’re seeing it in the style of play and the aggressive nature that the defense presents.”

The Rams and Eagles have each experienced unconventional weeks. The Eagles stayed on the West Coast after last Sunday’s loss to the Seahawks and trained out of Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California. The Rams were affected by wildfires that have devastated Ventura and L.A. counties, cancelling practice Wednesday and practicing through heavy winds Thursday. But both coaches shrugged off the logistical impacts on their respective preparations.

Given the talent and success on both sides, ESPN’s Football Power Index gave Eagles-Rams the third-highest pregame matchup quality of any game this season.

“This is a game everybody’s been anticipating,” Gurley said. “You get excited for games like this. Go out there and compete. You’ve got to beat the best in order to be the best, and that’s what both teams are going out there to try to do.”

It’s a bit of a misconception to suggest the Rams are stepping into unfamiliar territory against the Eagles on Sunday at the Coliseum.

Certainly the stakes are as high as they’ve ever been, the Eagles sitting just one game ahead of them in the conference postseason picture and the opportunity to wrestle away the second seed in the NFC playoffs with a win.

That’s big stuff.

There is also the division race to think about and the need to stay a step ahead of the fast-charging Seahawks.

And from a drama standpoint, it doesn’t get much thicker than two young, up-and-coming teams representing the West and East coasts while being quarterbacked by the top two picks in the 2016 draft.

You’ve got Hollywood vs. blue-collar Philadelphia and Jared Goff against Carson Wentz with all sorts of playoff implications on the line, so yeah, the stage is as big as it gets for the 13th week of the regular season.

“This is a game everybody’s been anticipating,” said Todd Gurley. “You got number one and number two with Goff and Wentz. That’s all they’ve been talking about. It’ll be a good game though. You get excited for games like this. Go out there and compete. You’ve got to beat the best in order to be the best and that’s what both teams are going out there to try to do.”

The stakes aren’t so high they intimidate the Rams who, for all their lack of success the past 14 years are actually perfectly built and prepared to step onto the kind of brightly lit stage Sunday’s game against the Eagles provides.

Instead of bracing for it, you got the sense this week the Rams are eagerly awaiting it.

“You play this game for these big moments,” declared veteran left tackle Andrew Whitworth. “It’s about that approach. To be excited for them and not be concerned or worried about them.”

It’s certainly not terrain so unfamiliar to the Rams they’re ill-equipped to navigate their way.

“We’ve been in big games like this before,” defensive tackle Michael Brockers said. “I think the Vikings game, when we played them, that was a big game. So we’re used to it. This is a young team but I think we’ve been through some fire throughout the season. So you just have to approach it like any other game. Prepare great. Trust what the coaches are preaching and trust the process.”

The reality is, almost from the moment the Rams marched into Dallas and beat the Cowboys in Jerry’s World to essentially announce themselves a real deal NFL contender, they’ve been defending and reaffirming their legitimacy ever since.

The Rams world effectively changed in Texas two months ago, and what resulted was the eyes of the football world monitoring their every step. Some looked on with admiration, others skepticism and even a few that predicted or worried the imminence of the other shoe falling.

Bill Parcells famously uttered the line: “You are what your record says you are.” But when you’re in the midst of the kind of last-to-first turnaround the Rams find themselves in after years and years of misery, how can anyone be be sure of anything?

And while our eyes revealed a powerful, emerging contender upon watching the Rams beat the Cowboys – if you’ve been around awhile you know what “it” looks like – the reality is the Rams have faced a series of litmus tests from that point.

That wasn’t exclusive to fans or onlookers, either. The Rams needed to prove to themselves their emergence wasn’t just a fleeting mirage.

Every game since has been high drama as a result.

Will the Rams continue to prove they belong? Or will they wilt under the pressure or succumb to a trap?

They spent a month away from home, playing two games on the East Coast and one in London.

They went to Minnesota to play the first-place Vikings.

The red-hot Saints rolled into the Coliseum with an eight-game win streak.

There was a trip to Arizona in a matchup that had all the makings of a trap game against the Cardinals.

It’s important to note the Rams have gone 6-2 since the breakthrough against the Cowboys.

Goff hasn’t plateaued, he has improved. The Rams offense hasn’t fallen off, it has sustained. And while there are some soft spots in the Rams defense, they generally get them fixed up at some point in the game.

They didn’t just survive the past nine weeks, they flourished.

The record plants them firmly in the thick of the NFC playoff race.

The experience has toughened them up for whatever looms ahead.

The former is vital for obvious reasons. The latter is essential for a team that hasn’t sniffed an important game in December in years.

And while Sunday represents their biggest test to date it’s only because it’s the most recent.

The Rams have been at this all year.

“There are, obviously, a little bit more implications later in the year, but it counts just the same as the first game of the year as any other game of the season,” Goff said. “So, really approach it the same way as those.”

Point being, the Rams have been dealing with these high-stakes for weeks now.

“Going to Minnesota and then playing at home against New Orleans, those were two great opportunities for us to have that experience,’ Whitworth said. “I think you learn and build from those. You find, hey what did we do good what are the things you wish you did better?”

The Eagles are No. 1 in rush defense, having allowed only 817 yards. They’ve allowed the fewest rushing touchdowns at four. And they have faced the fewest rushing attempts, at only 232.

So, what gives? Why is Philadelphia’s run defense so good in 2017?

“I think they’ve got great players. It’s a great scheme,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said this week of defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s unit. “You look at the way that those guys up front get off the football, they can run on all three levels, they pursue and they’re sound. They’re playing a lot of single-high structures, especially on some of those early down and distances. When you’ve got great players and you’re playing a lot of eight-man fronts and things like that, you’re going to get hats to the football.

“I think a lot of times what measures a great defense is the way they come off the football, the way they pursue, the way that they stay sound in terms of their gap integrity,” McVay continued. “You can see why they’re the best run defense in the league and it shows up on the tape.”

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PHOTOS: Week 14 Practice
But, the Eagles will be facing one of the best running backs in the league this weekend in Todd Gurley. He’s currently No. 3 in yards rushing at 939 and No. 2 in yards from scrimmage with 1,502. And he’s embracing the challenge of going against one of the league’s top defenses, particularly when it comes to the run.

“I love being in a game like this,” Gurley said Thursday. “Like I said, you have to beat the best in order to be the best. That’s why I play the game — to be one of the best. Be one of the best at my position and to show why I deserve to be in this league and I want to be in this league a long time. I get excited about these games, going out there competing with the best of the best. I’m just looking forward to it.”

Gurley mentioned Fletcher Cox as one of the biggest reasons why the Eagles have been so stout against the run in 2017, calling him one of the best defensive linemen in the league.

“He’s a great player, great pass rusher, run stopper and their linebackers are great,” Gurley said. “They’ve just been playing good ball this year and been able to go out there and play at a high level.”

“He’s an elite D-lineman in this league and somebody that you better take notice of on every play and have a plan for — and I think we do have a plan for that,” offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur said Friday. “But, again, it’s about us going out and executing our plan and it will be a great challenge. You look at that – it’s not just Fletcher Cox. They roll about six, seven guys that can really come off the ball.”

When it comes to this good-on-good matchup between the two teams, McVay said the approach will likely be a combination of playing to Gurley’s strengths and trying to exploit any slight flaw in the Eagles’ approach. But there is a caveat to that.

“There’s really not much to exploit against this defense, they’re pretty good,” McVay said. “I think when you look at any game, you always want to first be mindful of, ‘Are we putting our players in the right situations that are conducive for their skillsets and their strengths?’ But then you also want to make sure that you’re running concepts and plays that you feel like are going to be productive against some of the fronts or some of the coverages that you’re seeing from the defense, so it’s a combination of both.”

And there’s also a level of responsibility that lies with the playcaller.

“I’ve got to do a good job of making sure to get Todd going early in the game and make sure that you try to maintain that certain level of balance if we’re able to stay efficient on those early downs,” McVay said. “I know that on the flipside, that’s one of the keys to them is, ‘Let’s eliminate them on first down, get them into the known passing situations and then we can really start to tee off.’”

Though much of the narrative this week has been about the quarterbacks Jared Goffand Carson Wentz, the Rams run game vs. Eagles run defense will also be a determining matchup in Sunday’s game.

“You get excited for games like this, [to] go out there and compete,” Gurley said. “You’ve got to beat the best in order to be the best and that’s what both teams are going out there to try to do.”

Mort said this morning that in the last two meetings between these coaches, McVay’s team ran up over 800 yards. I was curious so I did some checking. In the first game between Philly and Washington last year, the Skins rang up 493 yards, rushing for 230 yards and passing for 263. In the second game, Washington had 95 yards rushing and 288 passing. Washington won both games scoring 27 points in each. My point is that McVay knows how to attack Schwartz’s defense. As long as our own defense can hold the Eagles to under 20 points, I think we’ll win this game.